IT´S ONLY A PAPER MOON
Music: Harold Arlen- Lyrics: Yip Harburg, Billy Rose
Year: 1933
Origin of the song
On 2 December 1932 the drama The Great Magoo was released in the Selwyn Theatre of New York, produced by Billy Rose, whose authors where Ben Hecht and Gene Fowler. The producer, who needed a song for a character who was disillusioned with life and finally fell in love, asked Arlen and Harburg if they had something suitable, and they gave him a song called ‘If You Believed in Me’. The song had a good reception but the show was a complete failure and they had to withdraw it from the hoarding after eleven performances.
On 25 November 1933, the film Take a Chance was released in the US, produced by Paramount Pictures, directed by Monte Brice and Laurence Schwab, and starring James Dunn, June Knight, Lillian Roth, and Cliff Edwards. It was a cinema adaptation of the Broadway musical with the same name, starring Ethel Merman, who had been very popular the previous season. In the soundtrack of the film Take a Chance they included the song ‘If You Believed in Me’ with the new title ‘It’s Only A Paper Moon’.
Arlen and Harburg collaborated many times –‘Last Night When We Were Young’ (1937), ‘Over the Rainbow’ (1938), and ‘Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe’ (1942)– with considerable success.
Versions in the top charts
|
PERFORMERS |
DATE OF RECORDING |
DAY OF ENTRANCE |
PERMANENCE WEEKS |
HIGH POSITION REACHED |
|
|
1933.09.11 |
1933.10.07 |
8 |
9 |
Peggy Healy (voc) |
|
|
Cliff Edwards |
1933.10.24 |
1933.11.25 |
4 |
13 |
Cliff Edwards (voc) |
|
King Cole Trio |
1943.12.15 |
1944.12.02 |
5 |
5 |
Nat Cole (voc)
Rhythm Blues charts |
|
Ella Fitzgerald & The Delta Rhythm Boys |
1945.03.27 |
1945.08.25 |
3 |
9 |
Ella Fitzgerald, The Delta Rhythm Boys (voc) |
|
Benny Goodman Orchestra |
1945.06.18 |
1945.09.29 |
1 |
10 |
Dorothy Reid (voc) |
Jazz. Outstanding performances
Instrumental
|
PERFORMERS |
DATE OF RECORDING |
MUSICIANS WHO TOOK PART IN THE RECORDING
|
|
1941.07.25 |
Charlie Shavers (tp), Buster Bailey (cl), Russell Procope (as), Billy Kyle (p), John Kirby (b), O'Neill Spencer (d) |
|
|
1946.01.15 |
Lester Young (ts), Howard McGhee (tp), Vic Dickenson (tb), Willie Smith (as), Wesley Jones (p), Curtis Counce (b), Johnny Otis (d) |
|
|
1949.01.?? |
Django Reinhardt (g), Stéphane Grappelli (vn), Gianni Safred (p), Marco Pecori (b), Aurelio de Carolis (d) |
|
|
1951.10.05 |
Miles Davis (tp), Sonny Rollins (ts), Walter Bishop Jr. (p), Tommy Potter (b), Art Blakey (d) |
|
|
Lionel Hampton Quintet |
1954.04.13 |
Buddy DeFranco (cl), Lionel Hampton (vib), Oscar Peterson (p), Ray Brown (b), Buddy Rich (d) |
|
1955.01.19 |
Art Tatum (p) |
|
|
1956.09.26 |
Kenny Drew (p), Paul Chambers (b), Philly Joe Jones (d) |
|
|
1962.03.18 |
Freddie Hubbard (tp), Curtis Fuller (tb), Wayne Shorter (ts), Cedar Walton (p), Jymie Merritt (b), Art Blakey (d) |
|
|
1975.04.09 |
Zoot Sims (ts), Count Basie (p, org), John Heard (b), Louis Bellson (d) |
|
|
1983.11.28 |
J.J. Johnson, Al Grey (tb), Kenny Barron (tec, p), Ray Brown (b), Mickey Roker (d), Dave Carey (per), |
|
|
1993.01.?? |
Stéphane Grappelli (vn), Martin Taylor (g) |
|
|
1994.??.?? |
George Shearing (p), Louis Stewart (g), Neil Swainson (b) |
Vocal
|
PERFORMERS |
DATE OF RECORDING |
MUSICIANS WHO TOOK PART IN THE RECORDING
|
|
1943.12.15 |
Nat Cole (p, voc), Oscar Moore (g), Johnny Miller (b) |
|
|
1945.03.27 |
Ella Fitzgerald, Carl Jones, Traverse Crawford, Kelsey Pharr, Otha Lee Gaines (voc), Renee De Knight (tp), Hi White (g), Haig Stephens (b), George Wettling (d) |
|
|
1945.06.18 |
Benny Goodman (cl, dir), Al Cuozzo, Vince Badale, Frank Lopinto, Tony Faso (tp), Trummy Young, Chauncey Welsch, Eddie Aulino (tb), Hymie Schertzer, Ray Eckstrand (as), Bill Shine, Al Epstein (ts), Danny Bank (bars), Charlie Queener (p), Mike Bryan (g), Clyde Lombardi (b), Morey Feld (d), Dorothy Reid (voc) |
|
|
1945.06.29 |
Jess Stacy (p, dir), Billy Butterfield, Pee Wee Erwin, Anthony Natoli (tp), Will Bradley, Jack Satterfield (tb), Sal Franzella (cl), Hank Ross, Hymie Schertzer (as), Larry Binyon, Julius Bradley (ts), Frank Worrell (g), Bob Haggart (b), Mario Toscarelli (d), Lee Wiley (voc) |
|
|
1950.04.24 |
Frank Sinatra (voc), Billy Butterfield, Steve Lipkins, Pinky Savitt (tp), Arthur Drelinger, Jimmy Horvath, Hymie Schertzer (as), Jerry Jerome, Babe Russin (ts), Bernie Leighton (p), Allan Reuss (g), Philip Stephens (b), Johnny Blowers (d), George Siravo (dir) |
|
|
1956.08.15 |
Nat Cole (p, voc), Harry 'Sweets' Edison (tp), John Collins (g), Charlie Harris (b), Lee Young (d) |
|
|
1960.08.01 |
Ella Fitzgerald (voc), Don Fagerquist (tp), Ted Nash (as), Plas Johnson (ts), Paul Smith (p), John Collins, Al Hendrickson (g), Joe Mondragon (b), Alvin Stoller (d), Billy May (dir) |
|
|
1967.07.26 |
Ella Fitzgerald (voc), Jimmy Jones (p), Bob Cranshaw (b), Sam Woodyard (d) |
|
|
1979.01.26 |
Dexter Gordon (ts), Woody Shaw (tp), Curtis Fuller (tb), George Cables (p), Rufus Reid (b), Eddie Gladden (d), Eddie Jefferson (voc) |
|
|
Tierney Sutton |
2008.09.03 |
Tierney Sutton (voc), Christian Jacob (p), Trey Henry (b), Ray Brinker (d) |
On cinemas
The song 'It's Only A Paper Moon' is included in the soundtrack of the following movies:
|
ORIGINAL TITLE |
TITLE IN SPAIN |
YEAR OF PRODUCTION |
PERFORMERS OF THE SONG IN THE FILM |
|
Take A Chance |
No se estrenó en España |
1933 |
Cliff Edwards |
|
A Streetcar Named Desire |
Un tranvía llamado deseo |
1951 |
Vivien Leigh |
|
Paper Moon |
Luna de papel |
1973 |
Paul Whiteman Orchestra |
|
Funny Lady |
Funny Lady |
1975 |
Barbra Streisand; James Caan |
|
Autour de minuit |
Alrededor de la medianoche |
1986 |
|
|
Grand Canyon |
Grand Canyon. El alma de la ciudad |
1991 |
|
|
A League Of Their Own |
Ellas dan el golpe |
1992 |
James Taylor |
|
Safe Passage |
Tensa espera |
1993 |
Heather Davie |
|
The English Patient |
El paciente inglés |
1996 |
|
|
The Notorious Bettie Page |
Bettie Page: la chica de las revistas |
2005 |
Coleman Hawkins |
|
The Break-Up |
Separados |
2006 |
Ella Fitzgerald |
|
The Water Horse: Legend Of The Deep |
Mi monstruo y yo |
2007 |
Benny Goodman Orchestra |
|
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl |
Kit Kittredge: Sueños de periodista |
2008 |
Cliff Edwards |
|
Killing Them Softly |
Mátalos suavemente |
2012 |
Cliff Edwards |
|
Manglehorn |
Señor Manglehorn |
2014 |
|
|
The Wedding Ringer |
El gurú de las bodas |
2015 |
|